Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		3.0
Audio		2.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.0

Delta Farce Blu-ray Movie Review

Lionsgate gets an A for effort, but Delta Farce misses the target--on all levels

Reviewed by Martin Liebman October 22, 2007

There are two kinds of movies I am pre-disposed to like--war films and films taking place in academia. So, I didn't sit down to watch Delta Farce thinking the worst, though I know this movie has been universally panned by critics and the public alike (3% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and a 2.5/10 [including being #93 on the bottom 100 list] on IMDB). The film stars Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engval, and DJ Qualls as three weekend warriors who, on their way to fight in Iraq, are accidentally dropped out of their cargo plane and into Mexico (more on the plot in a moment). I tried very hard to like this movie, then I tried very hard to tolerate this movie, and then I tried very hard to find anything good to say about this movie at all. I will admit I laughed here and there but the majority of the movie was downright dumb. The jokes were flat, the acting was poor, and the story line was ridiculous. To top it off, at the end of the movie we are told that "this film is dedicated to the real men and women serving in our armed forces all around the world." I would like to think that we could find a better way to pay tribute to our courageous servicemen, but alas, at least this movie had its heart in the right place. The film actually premiered at Andrews Air Force Base, where, as Larry the Cable Guy says, "it got even a better reaction than I thought it would. I mean, the troops really liked it and I am glad they did, because, you know, it was for them and it was to make them laugh a little bit and something they could relate to, as well. So, we were real happy with that" (taken from a March 10, 2007 interview with Greta Van Susteren).

This movie is definitely not "gittin'-r-done"

My biggest disappointment with this movie was that the primary joke and premise of the movie--soldiers accidentally dropped in Mexico and mistakenly thinking they are in Iraq--is revealed so quickly to our "heroes." The moments between the accidental drop into Mexico and the time the joke is up represents, to me, the really only funny moments in the movie. Parts of the first act had a few scattered laughs, but I found nothing redeeming at all about the third act of the film.

Larry The Cable Guy plays, uh, Larry, a redneck who has a propensity to put his foot in his mouth and subsequently finds himself without a job or a girlfriend. Bill Engval plays, uh, Bill, a redneck who is living off money won from an out-of-court settlement with Wal*Mart after slipping on a spill on isle six. DJ Qualls plays not DJ but rather Everett, a former policeman (for all of four days) who fancies himself a killing machine and is currently living in a storage shed. Our heroes, ladies and gentlemen. When heavy fighting is reported in Fallujah, Iraq, more soldiers are needed to serve on the front lines. Already spread thin, the army calls on Sergeant Kilgore (Keith David) to scrape the bottom of the barrel and bring these three to the front lines. He is accidentally dropped into Mexico with our trio and ultimately separated from the group. "Hilarity" ensues as he attempts to find them. Poor Keith David. He’s been in some pretty good stuff (Pitch Black, Platoon) and is a solid, dependable actor. His portrayal of Sgt. Kilgore is one of the very few bright spots in the movie, and even though he goes through some ridiculous moments, he plays it pretty well.

When the joke is up, our "heroes" must protect a Mexican village from Carlos Santana (Danny Trejo, who knows this movie is ridiculous and turns in a performance worthy of the quality of the movie) and his own band of idiots. Santana is the jeffe (boss) of the village and demands tribute from the villagers. Our heroes decide their primary mission as soldiers is to "bring the gift of freedom and democracy" so they decide to help the villagers drive Santana out once and for all.

Delta Farce Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

This 1080p, VC-1 encoded transfer is a very hit or miss. There are some fine details that look wonderful. Take the close-up of the U.S. flag at the beginning. It is crystal clear; every stitch is clearly visible. There are several close-ups where sweat glistens on skin and dirt on faces looks very realistic. At times, colors just pop of the screen and it can be a very natural looking image. Night scenes looked good and the black level doesn't disappoint. There are scenes, especially near the end of the movie, that look three-dimensional. Had this quality been present throughout, Delta Farce would have been reference material. More often than not, however, the image looks worse than one would expect for a movie that came out earlier this year and doesn't live up to the high points scattered throughout the film. There is often quite a bit of dirt and scratches on the print, especially during many of the daylight/outdoor scenes. These scenes also looked flat and overly soft. Overall it is a passable transfer.

Delta Farce Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Lionsgate presents Delta Farce with both a standard Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack as well as a 7.1 PCM uncompressed soundtrack. Unfortunately, despite the very nice inclusion of the 7.1 track, this is a very lackluster soundtrack that does its job but doesn't leave any lasting impressions. My primary complaint is the almost absent use of surrounds, despite the 7.1 encoding. I even stopped the movie partway through and ran a test tone through each speaker to make sure everything was still connected. It was, and I sampled other, more aggressive soundtracks to verify. Everything checked out. This is just a flat, dull soundtrack. Explosions and crashes don't work the subwoofer very hard. Gunfire across the front soundstage sounds well enough, and dialogue is generally crisp with no distortion. The soundtrack, consisting of quite a bit of Mexican-themed music, sounds very nice, but there is next to no ambience on this track. Considering the film grossed less than $9,000,000 domestically, I guess we shouldn't have expected it to have a killer soundtrack.

Delta Farce Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Lionsgate starts things off with a feature commentary track with director C.B. Harding. He spends most of the track discussing the happenings on-screen and a lot of the mundane details. There are a few anecdotes scattered throughout, but this is very standard stuff here. There are also six featurettes. Each is presented in 1080p. The actors and cast discuss filming locations (nothing was filmed more than 56 miles from Los Angeles) and real-life military experience (or lack thereof), for example. There is also a short feature focusing on Danny Trejo. Fans of the actor will be pleased as it's a decent piece. The disc also features five deleted scenes (1080i) that add a little background material (mostly extensions of scenes from early in the movie). There is also a "White People Are Funny" gag reel (1080i), featuring some of the "funny" outtakes from the movie. Rounding out the disc is a photo gallery and three 1080p trailers for Employee of the Month, Lord of War, and Ultimate Avengers 2. This is a very run-of-the-mill set of supplements here and nothing particularly worth watching.

Delta Farce Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Delta Farce has its moments, but the critics have nailed this one--it's just not good. While I didn't dislike every single scene, it's not a movie worthy of repeat viewings. The video was sub par and the soundtrack doesn't live up to the "7.1 PCM uncompressed" billing. This Blu-ray disc is worth a rental if you want to spend the evening laughing at a bad movie, but othewise I'd recommend skipping this one altogether.